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RICE is the most eaten cereal in
the world since it is the staple food for nearly 1/3 of the world
population.
Rice is the name of nearly 19 species of annual herbaceous plants
of the gramineae family, but only
Oryza sativa is important for human nourishment.
RICE is a plant that needs an acquatic
habitat, a warm and wet climate and can reach an height of nearly
1 metre.
At the moment of grain ripening, rice plant is very similar to oat.
Unlike other cereals, rice is very rarely used to produce flours
used to make bread. It is usually eaten boiled and seasoned according
to local customs.
 RICE
is cultivated, besides nearly all east Asian countries, in Egypt,
Italy, United States and Brazil.
Its cultivation requires a very abundant quantity of water and it
is cultivated in special plots, called rice mills, that are submerged
by water, except for some varieties of rice.
Rice mills remain flooded for most of the vegetative period of the
plant and is then reaped and threshed.
The rice cultivated in Italy has round grains and thanks to its
quality is widely considered one of the best in the world.
RICE started to be appreciated in
the Western World during the first century B.C.
In the Graeco-Roman civilization rice was considered an exotic spice,
which was extremely expensive and therefore it was used sparingly
during special circumstances or as a medicine.
Also during the Middle age rice was considered to have these properties,
as confirmed by a few notes recorded in the registers of the Sant'Andrea
hospital in Vercelli, dating back to 1250. Other evidences concern
the purchase of a few hectograms of rice to cook different types
of sweets, as recorded in the register book of the Savoy family.
RICE can be used to make an incredible
number of dishes, from hors-d'oeuvre to sweet and if cooked properly
you will be able to satisfy the most refined and sophisticated palates.
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